A comprehensive assessment of headache characteristics, management, and burden of migraine in comparison with tension-type headache in Türkiye: Results of a cross-sectional survey of adult patients
Mustafa Ertaş1, Sabahattin Saip2, Ömer Karadaş3, Vesile Öztürk4, Uğur Uygunoğlu2, Aynur Özge5, Serap Üçler6, Elif Ilgaz Aydınlar7, Pınar Yalınay Dikmen7, Nevzat Uzuner8, Gülnur Tekgöl Uzuner8, Şebnem Bıçakçı9, Taner Özbenli10, Elif Kocasoy Orhan1, Betül Baykan1, Esme Ekizoğlu Turgut1, Figen Gökçay11, Neşe Çelebisoy11, Hadiye Şirin11, Hayrunnisa Bolay Belen12, Tuğba Tunç12, Necdet Karlı13, Mehmet Zarifoğlu13, Babür Dora14, Levent Ertuğrul Inan15, Işın Ünal Çevik16, Ayşe Münife Neyal17, Manal Mehtar Bozkurt18, Aksel Siva21Department of Neurology, İstanbul University, İstanbul Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Türkiye2Department of Neurology, İstanbul University, Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine, Cerrahpaşa, İstanbul, Türkiye
3Department of Neurology, Health Sciences University, Gülhane Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Türkiye
4Department of Neurology, Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine, İzmir, Türkiye
5Department of Neurology, Mersin University Faculty of Medicine, Mersin, Türkiye
6Department of Neurology, University of Health Sciences, Dr. Cemil Taşçıoğlu City Hospital, İstanbul, Türkiye
7Department of Neurology, Acıbadem Mehmet Ali Aydınlar University, Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Türkiye
8Department of Neurology, Osmangazi University Faculty of Medicine, Eskişehir, Türkiye
9Department of Neurology, Çukurova University Faculty of Medicine, Adana, Türkiye
10Department of Neurology, VM Medical Park Hospital, Samsun, Türkiye
11Department of Neurology, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, İzmir, Türkiye
12Department of Neurology, Gazi University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye
13Department of Neurology, Uludağ University Faculty of Medicine, Bursa, Türkiye
14Department of Neurology, Akdeniz University Faculty of Medicine, Antalya, Türkiye
15Department of Neurology, Health Sciences University, Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Türkiye
16Department of Neurology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye
17Department of Neurology, Sanko University Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep, Türkiye
18Novartis Pharmaceuticals, İstanbul, Türkiye
Objectives: Migraine is a common cause of headache and a leading cause of morbidity in Türkiye. This study aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and management of migraine and to compare migraine with tension-type headache (TTH) regarding the burden of disease and healthcare resource utilization.
Methods: A total of 1368 patients (aged 18–65 years) with migraine or TTH were surveyed regarding sociodemographics, headache characteristics, clinical management, disease burden, quality of life, and healthcare resource utilization within the previous 12 months. Data from 1053 patients meeting the criteria for definite migraine (dMIG) or definite TTH (dTTH) were analyzed.
Results: The frequency and duration of attacks, the number of monthly headache days, days with analgesic consumption, and headache severity were significantly higher in dMIG compared to dTTH. Only 36.8% of definite migraineurs experiencing ≥4 monthly headache days were on preventive treatment. The negative impact on quality of life and economic loss were also higher in dMIG. Although more patients with dTTH visited a physician in the previous year, the number of physician visits was higher in dMIG. The groups were comparable regarding the percentage of patients who underwent radiological investigations due to headache; however, patients with dMIG had more brain magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scans.
Conclusion: Timely and accurate diagnosis and optimal management of migraine are crucial due to its significant burden. Educational programs for patients and healthcare providers, along with adherence to and persistence with preventive medications, may improve clinical outcomes.
Manuscript Language: English